Northwestern Wildcats

The top-seeded Zags (33-1) are essentially considering it as a road game Saturday when they face No. 8 Northwestern (24-11) with a trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 on the line.

In a Northwestern locker room aswirl in joy and delirium on Thursday night, a reporter approached Wildcat sub Gavin Skelly at his locker. Skelly flashed a big grin and patted the empty seat next to him. “Pull up a chair,” he said.

When asked to compare Gonzaga’s Przemek Karnowki and a player of similarly sizable stature from the Big Ten, Northwestern forward Derek Pardon described Karnowski as “heavyset.”

With 16 seconds left in No. 8 seed Northwestern’s 68-66 victory over No. 9 seed Vanderbilt, you could have made a pretty good case for Matthew Fisher-Davis as game MVP.

For many years Gonzaga has been an enigma – a small-conference school with the NCAA tournament success of a major conference power and the fan base to match. On Saturday, however, the Bulldogs will finally meet their match in the world of college basketball paradoxes – a Cinderella school from the Big Ten.

SALT LAKE CITY – Northwestern got its first NCAA Tournament victory, 68-66 over Vanderbilt, after Commodores guard Matthew Fisher-Davis inexplicably grabbed Wildcats guard Bryant McIntosh on purpose, sending McIntosh to the free throw line for the go-ahead points with 15 seconds left. Riley LaChance made a layup with 18 seconds remaining in Thursday’s game to put the ninth-seeded Commodores up by one after trailing by as many as 15.

At Northwestern, they’re celebrating a first-of-its-kind accomplishment – embarking on a trip to the NCAA Tournament that has eluded a school known for books, not basketball.

Northwestern’s agonizing wait went down to the last quadrant. Then everyone jumped for joy. The Wildcats celebrated their first NCAA Tournament bid. The No. 8 seed in the West Region will face ninth-seeded Vanderbilt on Thursday in Salt Lake City.

Going up against Wisconsin’s defense is a challenge under almost any circumstance. When the opposition is playing its third game in three days, it’s a mismatch.